


the lovers, the dreamers and me

by ilooklikeaspoon



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Horror, Dateko, Fukurodani - Freeform, Happy Halloween, Karasuno, Nekoma, Shiratorizawa, hinata is suffering in this one, i love him i’m so sorry, inarizawa, i’ll carve a pumpkin in his memory, mentions of aoba johsai
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:20:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27313969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ilooklikeaspoon/pseuds/ilooklikeaspoon
Summary: a dream is a wish your nightmares make.having a dream is considered treason. a dreamer of any sort must be locked away, in fear of their sparkle damaging society.hinata is forced to learn this the hard way.
Kudos: 7





	the lovers, the dreamers and me

_ “we’re gonna need all hands on deck today, ukai.” _

_ “oh, is that so?” _

_ “we have a new inmate joining us today.” _

_ “how interesting. any details?” _

_ “yes… and no.” _

_ “what does that mean, sir?” _

_ “he’s not like the others. he’s... oddworking- that’s the nicest way of putting it. be careful.” _

_ “i will, sir. who am i looking out for?” _

_ “number ten. hinata shouyou.” _

  
  
  


since when was the world so grey?

that sentence had been buzzing through hinata’s mind like a pesky bug since he stumbled upon this place.

he had no idea how he got here. or where he was. but he was fine. perfectly fine.

the concrete was patterned with dull bricks, hurting his eyes as the grey, empty squares repeated over and over again. the sky matched the floor as thunderous clouds loomed over his head, following each other one by one.

the empty space of the area felt like it was smothering him. he saw nothing for miles, except continued patterns of bricks which meant absolutely nothing and lead absolutely nowhere.

still, he continued to follow them anyway. with 

eyes were plastered to the floor and hands plastered in his pockets, he cocooned in on himself as best he could.

thankfully, these feelings of restraint didn’t last long. the pattern was neglected when he heard the clicking of shoes on concrete and spotted a shadow- distant in his lowered eyes.

he lifted his eyeline. ahead was a figure he couldn’t make out clearly- his clothes appearably black, but was his hair blonde or brown? were his eyes big or small? was he cheerfully smiley? he certainly looked full of pride, even from back here.

that’s what bugged hinata. he was sure he knew everyone from miyagi, from every nook and cranny in the town, but this was a figure he did not recognise.

his throat was already tightening at his unfamiliar surroundings, but when the figure took a step closer there was a claw of worry tightening around his voice box- threatening to pull out his stomach remains and shoot them out of the prize door.

he swallowed it down, eyes meeting the shadow.

“can i help you?” he managed to squeeze out. 

he was met with stillness.

_ click. _

the figure’s shoes tapped the concrete abis, taking one step forward.

hinata’s hands gripped his pockets so hard they were close to tearing.

a pause- then one more step.

anticipation and confusion were eating his body alive.

_ click. _

_ pause, click. pause, click.  _ another pattern had presented itself along with the concrete. 

_ pause. _

_ click. _

_ pause. _

he anticipated a click.

a click that never game.

the mysterious figure with a hidden face placed his palm against his ear, whispering something.

_ “i’ve retrieved number ten, boss.” _

and just like that, the grey world was taken over by a black blanket in an instant.

he didn’t feel anything for a while.

  
  


-

  
  


_ pause, click. _

_ pause, click. _

_ click. click. click. _

there was no pause. 

hinata shot up, beads of sweat running down to his lip from the sudden jolt. his eyes felt like a galaxy as he rubbed them with the back of his hand, trying to gain a sense of his surroundings.

was the concrete neverland all a dream, then?

it can’t have been. he felt it deep inside. perhaps it lead him here- on a springy bed, levitating high above yellow-tinted walls and tiles around him. nothing special about the room at all.

that bothered him, looking around. this room was too lifeless, it made him feel uneasy. 

where did this come from?

where on earth was he?

“good to see you’re awake, number ten.”

a stone-cold voice caused him to look up. he jolted when he spotted a man leaning against the door frame, enhanced in a clipboard.

“hmph…” hinata grunted, sifting up fully. “where am i? who are you?” 

the man’s muddy eyes snapped up, slicked blonde hair not moving an inch as his shoes clicked along the tiled floor. as he approached closer, hinata spotted silver gems crawling up and down his ear, leading to a cutting jawline which held up non-existing lips that sucked on a cigarette.

“can you be quiet for a moment?” 

hinata’s breath was hitched. 

he scoffed shakily, “i want to know where i am, at least.”

the man’s eyes raised from his clipboard once more giving nothing but a look that lacked substance. 

“you are where you’re supposed to be.”

hinata felt like laughing in his face. really? was that all he got, after being taken against his will?

“that doesn’t really answer my question.”

again, the man shot an empty look before returning to his clipboard. hinata wondered what was so important about it- the man was desperate to be sucked into what was written on it.

he was answered with silence, his attention being forced back to the emptiness this strange room brought.

if anything, this was easier to deal with- rather than the mysterious man in the pristine suit and what he was going to say next. he had a face so stern and a mouth so quick and witty, it was probably better that he didn’t say anything at all.

“who are you?” hinata decided to ask as the man turned away from him. 

he didn’t turn around, nor take a second to stop what he was doing. “my name is ukai. i’ll be your main caretaker here.”

hinata’s eyes froze.

“...caretaker?” was the only thing his brain could recite over and over, like an awful children’s rhyme.

“yes, caretaker.” ukai said nonchalantly. 

the ginger stayed quiet, hoping to leave some room for ukai to expand on his answer further. he didn’t.

“you were the man outside on the concrete, weren’t you?” hinata asked.

“yes. i had to come collect you.”

“ _ kidnap. _ ” hinata tightened his teeth.

ukai turned around from the lanky desk in the corner, slowly lifting his jawline up like a member of royalty.

“kidnap? oh,not at all. kidnapping is when you get stolen away from home- this is the other way around. we had to bring you back home, number ten.”

“number ten? back home?”

hinata tilted his head like a lost puppy, desperation for sense bubbling over. 

before he could even pick another question from his long list, ukai slammed the clipboard on the desk which hit the wood like an earthquake. the vibrations echoed through the empty room and slammed through hinata’s mind over and over as ukai scurried over.

hinata began to notice a tinge of panic appearing on his stone face with every step.

“don’t tell me you’re completely clueless as to why you’re here, boy?” 

the real worry settled in. it caged hinata’s stomach and tightened, pulling so tight he couldn’t form a sentence.

ukai wiped sweat from his brow bone.

“jesus.” was all he muttered under his breath.

hinata’s tongue and stomach were still dreadfully tight. 

“hinata, did your mother ever teach you about dreams? the future?” ukai asked, looking down on him.

he was slightly taken-aback. “uhh… we never really talked about the future. the truth is, i think she was scared of it. or scared of  _ my  _ future.” he took a breath. ukai’s eyes never left him.

“now that you mention it... i always wanted to play volleyball, you see. i guess that was my dream. but my mom would always change the subject everytime i tried to talk about it, or simply nod and look away. she would always tell me not to talk about it in school, saying ‘you are in school to work, that’s it.’ but now that i think about it… she never let me talk about it at all.”

_ pause. _

ukai clicked his tongue.

“protection. now i get it.” ukai uttered in realisation.

hinata looked up from his fidgeting fingers at ukai, awaiting his next words. awaiting his stomach getting tighter.

“i’m going to be the bad guy for a while. my apologies.”

the fuzzy walls were beginning to close in on him.

“perhaps your mother was waiting until you were older to tell you this, hinata. i can't be sure.” ukai searched his brain for words.

“in this life, there are rules. unspoken rules, rules that aren’t written in a book- but we follow them anyway. it’s just the way things are. people like you, however…” ukai tried to scramble words together, “you were born different. you don’t know these rules.”

“i don’t understand.” hinata replied.

“you wish to make your own future, yes? you have dreams. but dreams are only for sleeping. think of me as… waking you up. confining you here, so you don’t mess up the status quo. with these dreams, you cannot be in the outside world.” 

his heart was rattling.

he felt like his body was a treadmill without controls, and a force was making it go faster and faster, but he couldn’t get off.

it was heavy…

_ click. _

his anchor sunk into the sand. 

his mother wouldn’t let him speak about his dreams in public… she would never encourage him… she would shush his ambition down to dust…

because of  _ this? _

“to put it politely, i’m a highlighter in a world of pencils.” he spoke through shivers.

“you know all too well dreaming is a disease.”

hinata’s eyes hid themselves to the mattress. his tears didn’t have time to roll down his cheeks as they splattered straight to the ground, covering him in regret, confusion, bullshit- everything he once loved about his mother turned upside down.

she lied to him.

he deserved to know.

“you did deserve to know.” ukai’s voice echoed his thoughts.

“but would that have stopped you, number ten?” 

his blood flowed like an IV drip full of lies.

ukai held out a hand to help him up.

_ help him up.  _ like that was the case.

“welcome to unit karasuno, number ten. on behalf of all authority, we hope you enjoy your lifelong stay.”

  
  
  


-

hinata was a wanderer.

his mother told him that when he was younger. from when he would wander too far into his neighbourhood woods, to letting his mind wander deep into his little world of dreams.

she would tell him to stay put. to not get lost.

but wandering around the corridors of this rotting prison, he figured he had wandered too deep. 

being found was out of the question.

the clicking of ukai’s shoes was the only noise echoing through the never-ending corridor. the doors along the walls looked plastered on and meaningless, getting smaller and smaller with every passing handle. 

the walls were plain, but vibrant which stung hinata’s eyes at every glance, along with the pristine floor.

“hey, ukai. what exactly are we supposed to do here?”

ukai owed him a side-eye. “you may do as you please, as long as you’re not hurting anyone. our only job is to keep you enclosed here. this is not a hospital where we make you better and then release you.” 

there was silence for a moment.

_ pause. _

“you are assigned in unit karasuno, which means ‘broken wings.’ it’s nothing serious- simply based on your background and what your dream was anticipating for you. everyone falls into a category so we can keep you under control.” 

_ click. _

he let the words simmer for a while.

broken wings… how melancholy. tragic-sounding. hinata hated it.

“so there are others?” he asked.

ukai handed him a piece of paper from his clipboard. 

his eyes glazed over at the list of categories. 

places with glass hearts and golden souls.

_ “karasuno (broken wings) - 14 residents. _

_ aoba johsai (borderlines) - 10 residents. _

_ nekoma (united as one) - 9 residents.  _

_ shiratorizawa (the destroyers) - 8 residents. _

_ dateko (the screamers) - 5 residents. _

_ fukurodani (hidden in the shadows) - 7 residents. _

_ inarizaki (memories) - 8 members.” _

he refrained from asking how they came up with the names. he wasn’t sure if he wanted to know.

“some advice for you, number ten.” ukai’s voice was hoarse.

hinata glanced at him as they continued to walk.

“don’t even attempt to visit any other units.”

that  _ tone. _

condescending. gruff. sharp. hinata knew it well.

“what would happen if i did?” hinata took the risk and poked the ukai bear.

“i don’t think you want me to elaborate on that.”

shivers passed through his body, shushing him into submission- the only sounds left being the click of both shoes and the echoes of things happening elsewhere in the building.

_ crying. _

_ water splashing. _

_ bells ringing. _

_ more clicks, in an unusual rhythm. _

ukai kept his head upright and unbothered. hinata suspected he should be doing that too. 

before long, ukai’s clicks slowed down and stopped at one of the doors-second to the end of the corridor. hinata felt uneasy looking back at where they came from- the lengthy, absence-less path making his head spin funny. 

“welcome to the karasuno common room.” ukai warmly introduced.

he smiled a smile that held a few too many teeth as he pushed on the handle, escorting hinata inside. 

he felt the door close behind him. 

it was too late. there was no turning back now.

and god, he wished there was an exit door. if he thought the room before was bad… holy hell.

walls were as shiny as sapphire but as blank as a canvas, desperate to be filled in by something, anything apart from windows that lead to a forbidden world. the carpet was thin and creaky, more like a piece of paper as it could barely hold up the only two couches and table surrounded by chairs. an array of doors haunted one wall, all leading to god knows where.

the room was surrounded by god knows who. faces he will never truly recognise.

“settling in is simple. you won’t need to worry about that.” ukai’s voice came right on cue from his shoulder.

“it may be simple, but it won’t be easy.” he mumbled, lip quivering at the thoughts of  _ actually having to set up camp here. _

why hasn’t he woken up yet?

“i’ll leave you here to settle in and come back for you when it’s time to go to your rooms. no funny business, is that clear?”

“crystal.”

ukai took his leave. hinata stood out in the open, exposed from every angle, trying to get his balance as his shakes swayed him side to side. 

he was a lost cause. he had no idea what to do, how to process any of this, what was awaiting him next…

he supposed a group of broken wings was awaiting him next. there was only five of them in this room, mentally sighing with relief as he counted- but if it only took one stone to kill two birds, what damage would five do? hinata didn’t want to think about the results.

they were staring at him.

_ pause. _

he took a step forward.

_ click. _

_ pause. _

“do you know what’s on the other side of a rainbow?” 

a monotone voice from a muscly ratite startled him. his eyes scurried around the room, wanting to look anywhere else- was he supposed to know the answer?

“i-no. no, i don’t.”

“don’t scare him, tanaka.” a soft-voice eased his dread from a kid who looked like a warm furnace- someone you would want by your side in a crisis.

“rainbows are only illusions, anyway.” tanaka spoke up again, fiddling with loose threads on his monochrome pyjamas.

_ pause. _

“tell me, number ten. have you ever  _ seen  _ a rainbow?”

the voice that came from the platinum haired boy in the corner was like a prune. soft is what you assume it to be, but a hard rock hits your teeth when you bite.

“no… i haven’t. i don’t think i’m worthy of seeing such joy.”

he smiled a smile with plastic cheeks. “you’re gonna fit right in, then.”

he waited for the click. but it never came.

  
  


-

the group of six broken wings were sitting in various parts of the room as the sun was disappearing, their minds in their own little worlds.

their minds should be present, but what else would they do? daydreaming was a thief of time, taking every spare minute the mind was given. 

“number ten?” 

hinata was pulled into reality by sugawara- the platinum haired boy with the plastic cheeks- close to his face, snapping a finger.

“what’s your name?” 

“uh, it’s hinata.” he replied, apprehensive.

“hinata.” sugawara repeated.

the other four ratites turned to look at him in unison, necks glitching.

“you know tanaka already. meet ennoshita and yamaguchi,” he pointed to the other couch, “we’ll be your best bet for safety in karasuno.”

nerves turned into spiders as hinata shivered.

“safety?”

“broken wings… we are the runts. the ones who were broken and set apart from everyone from the get-go.” the warm furnace voice returned, his tone turning into ice. he figured this must be ennoshita.

“some are more broken than others. take daichi, for example. number one.” 

“first is the worst…” hinata whispered to nothing.

“exactly that. he’s been hit- and hit hard. you’ll get an eye in the peephole if you’re lucky, but most days he never leaves his room. that’s the same for most of them… try as you might, you won’t break their mindset.”

“some questions are better unanswered, ennoshita. that’s enough.” yamaguchi scowled.

hinata gave him a steady look before turning back to ennoshita, who bit his lip.

“apologies. yamaguchi is… protective, to say the least.” 

the boys went cold.

“apart from that, is there anything else you want to know? i think you’re all set up. you know why you’re here, that you can’t leave, where everything is, the other units-“

“tell me about them.”

hinata didn’t miss a beat.

_ pause. _

he gulped.

sugawara let out an unusual laugh, clicking his tongue.

“words cant describe them. if you’re curious… go and look for yourself.” he smiled through malicious teeth.

“he needs to be taught how to obey the rules, suga!” ennoshita snapped, “why would you say that?”

“i don’t want another soul to end up like us.”

he was cutting. ennoshita sighed, giving him the floor.

“look, kid. we all have our stories. you have a story, i have a story, every single person in this facility has a story begging to be heard. you’re a fighter; a true dreamer. i can see it in your eyes.”

hinata’s chocolate eyes sparkled, and he didn’t care to stop them. no matter how wrong it was.

“i’ll let you in on a little secret, hinata. you have potential. from the moment you stepped in, i knew you didn’t belong.” 

sugawara grinned with a face that was so unnerving, so malicious- hinata couldn’t help but trust it.

“so, while you’re here… let’s give them a fucking show.”

hinata felt like laughing. sugawara couldn’t be serious, could he? he only just arrived, surely this was a setup to fail. a setup for his execution, his life on the line…

he stopped his thoughts.

his life was on a line, somewhere. the life where he played volleyball, the life where his dreams came true.

it was out there, somewhere. and he wasn’t gonna stop for a second until he got his claws sunk into it.

“i happen to know a secret pathway to get to another unit- fukurodani,” sugawara’s disembodied voice was bent down to his ear, “the ones hidden in the shadows. as long as you promise not to tell a single soul about this little discussion…”

hinata bit his lip. 

was the adrenaline good or bad?

“i’ll take you there.”

  
  


-

  
  


“well then, alice. are you ready?” 

hinata scoffed. sugawara was playing the role of the rabbit very well, leading him straight to his doom- and the setting was extremely accurate.

darkness.

all he could see, in the tight little corridor by the corner of the ward, was darkness.

“they keep it dark for a reason.” sugawara spoke in a tight voice. 

“it wouldn’t hurt to have a little light.” hinata softly breathed a laugh.

“that’s why you’re here!” he cheered, the ‘hooray’ lasting a little longer than it should have.

hinata forced a laugh, hand furiously itching the back of his neck.

_ pause. _

“be back before eight, understand?” he warned. hinata nodded.

there was no goodbye. sugawara simply shot him with his bullets for pupils, then marched away.

hinata’s lungs filled with light air in a melancholy building before stumbling into the madness, his feet doing the thinking as his mind went numb with a wave of a frequency. a certain frequency that felt familiar… but he couldn’t put a finger on why.

is this what hope feels like?

he had never felt that before. 

false hope? sure. hope when you knew everything was falling apart but there was still that voice saying everything would work out? he knew that all too well.

‘this is different,’ he thought to himself as his fingers scraped along the walls, which were a little too clean considering where he was.

pristine, but nowhere near perfect.

walking through that pristine corridor didn’t take him long to get to the fukurodani unit- before he could let the blanket of nerves settle, he had his hand pushing down on the door handle. 

_ pause. _

_ click. _

_ pause. _

_ click. _

hinata forced on the pauses, not moving a muscle.

pressing his ear against the door, he heard nothing. 

and saw nothing. from the peephole, the room was completely dark.

was sugawara telling the truth? did he lead him to a room of stories he so wished to hear?

this was his first day here. he shouldn’t have trusted someone so quickly- especially someone with a smile like his.

‘it’s not too late to turn back…’ he pondered.

_ pause. _

  1. he wouldn’t let himself. besides, in this derealised unit, something like this was giving him the biggest thrill he’ll ever get.



_ click. _

with that thrill rushing in his dreamy mind, the door opened. as he stepped further inside and carefully closed the door behind him, there was no voices.

or figures that loomed far away.

was karasuno the light-hearted and fun unit, compared to this?

he wanted something to happen. he wanted a voice to scurry through his bones. he wanted to see something move out the corner of his chocolate, alert eyes. instead, hinata was left to shiver in the darkness, completely alone.

desperate for the silence and darkness to leave his mind alone, he cleared his throat.

by the luck of a full moon, it seemed that was enough of a cue.

his eyes had trouble adjusting as fluorescent lights snapped on, streams of a variety of colours also begging to be in his vision. his sight was clouded but his ears picked up soft pops and a strange vibration he did not recognise- was it an instrument?

hinata, out of pure instinct, ducked into a ball.

this was a mistake.

“hey, hey!! who is that?! it’s not sugawara this time? hey, little friend, don’t be shy. open your eyes now, would ya?!” 

a mighty hand was placed on his shoulder, shaking it to straighten up- but hinata stayed as still as a statue. the sudden sign of affection terrified him more than anything- he hadn’t felt affection since… he couldn’t remember. 

but a voice that wasn’t flatlined? hinata sighted with relief. 

one by one, eyelashes sticking together, he opened his eyes.

the room layout was exactly the same as karasuno’s common room. another pattern.

five residents irked at the back, turning their mechanical heads to stare him down. another pattern.

the two shadows in the light, looming over him with mouths agape? not another pattern.

“can you speak, little fella?” 

the softness that coated his excitement made hinata melt a little inside.

“who are you?” a deeper voice echoed.

hinata tensed at the curiosity. he rested his palms on his knees and began to straighten up, desperate to get his head screwed on straight.

“my name is hinata, or number ten. i come from karasuno. i-i just arrived today.” with a quivering lip, he pushed for confidence.

but did fukurodani even care? 

he had two pairs of safe, autumnal eyes looking at him with such wonder, monochrome hair tones bouncing all over the place in glee, and hands on his shoulders trying to ground him.

the gentle giant with silver hair sprung upwards. “ah, karasuno! how generous of you to pay us a visit, isn’t it akaashi! oh, this calls for a celebration! let us thank you!” 

the one who hinata assumed was akaashi was a cricket compared to the silver-haired panda. he looked down, nodded a single nod, and headed away. hinata followed suite, the warm welcome still lingering on his cheeks.

“may i ask your name, sir?” hinata asked the panda, barely above a whisper. 

“it’s bokuto! and no need for the sir, my friend,” he soothed.

a laugh bubbled in the air, meeting all three of their lips in the most perfect harmony.

“now, fukurodani will come together and we will give you a proper welcome. we can share stories also! i want to know all about you and your dreams, little fella.” his voice was hushed in the last sentence.

“sounds like a plan!” hinata beamed, glowing with value.

hinata followed bokuto and akaashi into the middle of the room, necks of shadows still frozen towards them and their eyes slanted with dismay.

“alrighty! look everyone, we have a very special guest. let's give him the warmest fukurodani welcome!” bokuto cheered towards them.

_ pause. _

“we need to show hinata how much of a loving family we are!” 

_ pause. _

“because fukurodani is the place to be, right?!” 

hinata’s heart twinged.

“because we know where the rainbows are, don't we?” 

a click never followed.

they lived up to their name. the group stayed hidden in the shadows, paying bokuto the cold shoulder as they turned his request upside down. 

hinata had never seen anything like bokuto’s eyes when they turned away. they weren’t eyes anymore- simply a washed away beach with a black void like no other.

it was cold. it was so,  _ so  _ cold in here.

“bokuto? i-“

“no need! they’ll come around, we just gotta keep cheering for them!” 

the ringleader of the circus turned into the sad but resilient clown. bokuto danced around his family, performing a solo for the dreamers as he flailed his arms up and down, his eyes begging for recognition.

akaashi mumbled a “looks lovely, bokuto!” before turning his head away.

hinata’s eyes brimmed at the lost hope.

“ah, nevermind! they’ll come around one day. c’mon, hinata! let me show you something!” 

why was bokuto so happy?

_ how  _ was he so happy?

as he pondered on this thought, the atmosphere changed.

hinata caught sight of his eyes again. and he  _ saw. _

he saw eyes that had been torn apart over the years. he saw a soul that used to be a sunshine. he saw the pleading, the wishing for something he never had.

it harrowed in hinata’s heart to see such a beautiful smile with those eyes. 

but alas, they continued. bokuto prompted him to sit down, squeezing all three of them in a corner and he reached to the bookshelf behind him, pulling out a piece of paper.

“so, hinata. it’s your first day, is that right?”

“right. it doesn’t feel like it, however… it feels like ukai was explaining to me what all this was years ago.”

“it does that to you. believe me, time works in mysterious ways here.” akaashi sighed sympathetically.

“and what was your dream, hinata?” bokuto whispered.

“i really wanted to play volleyball.”

he sparkled, “hey, that’s great! volleyball is a beautiful sport. you used to play it in middle school, didn’t you akaashi?”

akaashi softened, “sure did. i got kicked off the team, though- coaches said i got ‘too passionate’ about it.”

hinata looked at akaashi like he was an angel.

“you’re lucky you even got a chance to play. so, was that your dream too?” 

“oh, no no. me and bokuto didn’t get a chance to fully dream.”

hinata’s eyebrows furrowed, “but i thought this was the place where dreamers were hidden away?” 

“not exactly, little fella. every unit means something different- but generally, it’s for the people who had potential to mess up the status quo. go against society and its rules. you ever heard of capitalism?” bokuto explained, leaving hinata breathless.

“...capital letters?” 

akaashi stifled a laugh, patting hinata on the head which made a ginger bush bounce. “let's not get into capitalism today. bokuto, you ready to take the floor?”

“ah, of course!”

for the first time in his life, hinata felt warm.

“do you know what this is, hinata?” 

bokuto handed him a piece of paper with spider-like writing, words fuzzing together in a childish rhyme he couldn’t understand. 

”i don’t. this doesn’t make sense.”

“awww come on, lighten up! this is a song we love to sing, and every unit joins in with us. it’s a symbol of comfort, so to speak.”

“oh.” hinata was shocked into silence.

“what’s wrong, hinata?” akaashi asked.

his lip quivered.

“nothing. i’m fine. well, shall we sing it then?”

“that’s the spirit!” bokuto chimed, “here’s to hinata’s first day in the family, and many more to come. are we ready?”

each boy took a breath, and began to sing to the empty room gently in unison.

_ “why are there so many songs about rainbows _

_ and what's on the other side? _

_ rainbows are visions, but only illusions _

_ and rainbows have nothing to hide _

_ so we've been told, and some choose to believe it _

_ i know they're wrong, wait and see _

_ somebody we'll find it, the rainbow connection _

_ the lovers, the dreamers, and me” _

“there’s more to life than this.”

hinata blurted it out. it came from nowhere- but speaking those words felt right.

“we’ll find out one day.” akaashi smiled gently.

“soon, hinata. we promise.” 

bokuto looked at hinata, then akaashi. 

_ pause. _

_ click. click.  _

_ pause.  _

_ click. click.  _

they were still.

_ pause. _

_ click. click.  _

_ pause. _

_ stamp. stamp. _

_ stamp. stamp. _

“what’s ha-“

“shush.”

akaashi’s deep voice wasn’t light anymore.

“maybe it’s just another visitor wanting to party with us… heh…”

no one was convinced by bokuto’s happiness anymore.

_ stamp. stamp. _

they approached closer.

it was unlike any other pattern he’d ever heard in his life. every click and stamp was slightly off beat which made his heart uneasy, a bad hope eating his skin.

_ stamp. click, stamp. _

it wasn’t until he looked down to fidget with his fingers that he noticed akaashi and bokuto holding hands.

“guys, please- what’s going on-“

“i think we were too loud.”

_ we  _ were too loud?

the crash catapulting from the door said otherwise.

hinata jolted back, trying to squeeze between bokuto and akaashi. but they weren’t warm anymore. 

they were shivering, in fact. their eyes turned into a pot of white paint- wide open, quivering, yet still and steady. their lips squeezed together forming a tight line.

hinata began to shiver just looking at them. they looked  _ horrified. _

“oh god.” was the last thing hinata heard before three shapes formed in the room.

could he even call them human? 

did he know what human meant anymore?

their faces were cowardly hidden but the outline of them were stock-photogenic, nothing noticeable jumping out of them. and that was terrifying to hinata. because they all looked exactly the same.

_ thud. _

_ thud. thud. _

_ thud. _

shuffling back against a wall was useless. 

_ thud. _

he didn’t have a second to take a breath and use it for a little purpose.

one of them grabbed him by the collar, dragging him behind like garbage. 

he kicked, he screamed, he clicked his shoes trying to click any sanity into their minds.

but it was no use. this was authority- something a dreamer had no match against.

the last thing his eyes were faced with were two people he thought he trusted, for once in his life, whispering “i’m sorry,” like it meant something.

his eyes squeezed tears like a faucet. when he opened them again, his feet were squeaking against tiles and his mind was reciting whispers of rhymes to drown the horrific yelps and squeaks out.

“why are there so many…songs about rainbows…” 

his hair was being pulled.

“and what’s on the other side…”

he wasn’t alone.

the hidden shadows stood outside the door, eyes never leaving hinata as they sang.

“rainbows are visions… but only illusions…” 

their voices were being drowned out as he was pulled further away.

“and rainbows have nothing to hide…”

they were drowned out by other voices.

an array of colours and people he had never seen before all stood alongside the corridor, a variety of expressions and soft whimpers escaping their lips as they rejoiced together.

further down the corridor, he spotted the five crows of karasuno. it was a crows calling, hearing them all sing to one of their own- sugawara looking especially stunned.

a crows  _ falling. _

“so we’ve been told… and some choose to believe it…” 

hinata had never felt so humiliated and alone, surrounded by people of his own kind. 

was he sad that this could possibly be the end?

“i know they’re wrong, wait and see…” 

or was this… relief?

relief that he didn’t have to fight anymore?

“someday we’ll find it…”

he was reaching the end of the corridor.

he spotted ukai, holding a tissue up to his eyes.

“the rainbow connection…”

which he never did find.

as hundreds of dreamers all looked down on him, towering over like the most tragic fairytale, he gave one last sob before being dragged into another corridor- getting one last glimpse of the people he had lost hope in.

“the lovers… the dreamers… and me.”  
  
the inmates held onto the last line for a little too long.

some wiped tears, some were completely numb to it by now- knowing number ten would never be seen again.

**Author's Note:**

> happy halloween everybody! i hope you enjoyed this, it’s just a small thing but i wanted to write something for my favourite time of year.
> 
> these ideas were super fun to play around with! if you liked this and want me to write any alternative endings where hinata meets different units, please let me know! 
> 
> if you hated it then i won’t. i don’t blame you, either. 
> 
> as always, i’m on twitter @moonlightnoya :D
> 
> thank you for reading! until next time! 🖤


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